Traktor Pro 2 Slashed By 61%, Now Comes Free With All NI DJ Gear

Traktor Scratch A6/A10 are the new names for the Audio 6/Audio 10 interfaces, which now come - like all Traktor hardware - with the full version of the software, and a free upgrade to version 2.5 when it's released.

In an aggressive move to consolidate its position in the DJ software market, Native Instruments today slashed the price of Traktor Pro 2, killed off entirely Duo (offering all Duo owners a free upgrade to Pro), and announced that the full Pro version of Traktor will now be bundled with all Traktor hardware, from the lowly Audio 2 upwards. Native is calling it a "simplification" of the range to coincide with the launch of Traktor Pro 2.5, but it also effectively marks the end of expensive DJ software; the most that users will pay for Traktor is now US$89/€79 (the price of the software bought fresh from the NI store) against US$229/€199 previously, and for US$119/€99 for the Audio 2 - the cheapest hardware from NI - you also get the full version of Traktor as well.

New upgrade offers for all Traktor owners
The company confirmed its previously announced free upgrade to Traktor Pro 2.5 for all 2.x owners, including those who buy Traktor hardware as of today to take advantage of the new bundles.

In a further attempt to bring users on to the latest version of the software, Native Instruments has also announced that owners of all pre-Traktor 2 versions of the software can upgrade to the latest version for US$44.50/€39.50 until April 30, 2012.

New names and prices
On day of multiple changes that NI is called "Traktor Remixed", the Audio 6 and Audio 10 interfaces are now exclusively available with their respective digital vinyl systems, and have been renamed Traktor Scratch A6 and A10, coming in at US$339/€299 and US$559/€499 respectively.

Finally, following the recent offer period, Native has confirmed that the Traktor Kontrol S2 has now been given a new permanent price of US$559/€499.

What implications do you think this new pricing structure will have on the DJ software and hardware markets? Are the days of expensive DJ software finally over? Please share your thoughts in the comments.

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I COULD post what I already posted on DJTechTools but that's a LOOONG rant.... Basically, I'm out 500 bucks between full version of TK 3, upgrade to Pro, purchase of an Audio 2DJ, purchase of Mixed In Key and upgrade, then the upgrade to TK Pro 2... NOW, what do I get?? A $ voucher you say??? Where can I find this voucher???

Native Instrument promotions come in waves. Since the low price promotion for the S2 ended the day before yesterday, I expected them to come up with a new promotion soon. But I wasn't expecting *this*. This is huge.

On the other hand, software for the Mac iPad and iPhone is quite cheap, including the price for DJ software, which is eroding the price that people are willing (hoping) to pay. Maybe NI is responding to this trend?

This is pretty crazy. I bought the Kontrol S2 no more than a month ago and the ability to get the software played a huge role in my search for a new controller. Granted I did get an insane deal ($340), but this announcement still has me reconsidering. I just might sell my S2, get an Audio 2 with Traktor Pro 2, and go back to controller shopping without having to worry about audio interfaces and software!

Haha, glad i didn't buy it! 😀 I think it wasn't too hard to sense when they cut prices on S2. Great news for musicians all over the world! Less is more for NI im sure. It cost less, but lots of more sales (and less piracy of course).
*thumbs up*

Interesting. I just paid the full upgrade price ($159?) to move from Traktor LE 2 bundled with my Kontrol X1 surface to full-blown TP2...and I haven't even been using it (I'm happy with Itch right now). I'll have to look into the voucher they're offering and see how it applies to me as a US user.

Fascinating move on NI's part...it's time Serato REALLY steps up if they ever want Itch to be a serious contender to Traktor Pro. The Bridge absolutely MUST come to Itch either this year or early next, and a killer new Itch hardware controller HAS to come to market that can take on the NI Kontrol-series, especially S4 and F1.

Clipbased DJ-ing...? If you're smart, you produce at home and save it as a new track, load it in your deck at a gig.
A dj who pushes 3 wrong buttons is the equivalent of a vocalist with a false note.
Clipbased Dj-ing: a clever way of marketing and suck money out of your wallet...

According to this logic....getting a bag full of records, going to a club to play track after track beat-synced is not that smart too.....Just record a 2 hour set at your home and then take it to th eclub, insert disc into cd-player and hit "play"

No, i play the tracks my audience expect to hear. They don't want to hear me messing up great tracks. I'm hired as a "DJ" (who plays others music) not as an artist or producer...what is something else.
You also sell tracks on beatport, so... you never played them at your gigs...you do produce everything live then (:-)? Don't lie.

Can I just say that all audiences are different? It's not constructive to assume that everyone is a DJ like you, or every audience anywhere in the world is the same as the audiences you play to. Try and keep an open mind here please.

What a bold move! Now this means that NI is steps ahead of the competition. And this price cut means a lot of difficulties for Virtual DJ (their flagship VDJ Pro edition is already $300 - 3x the price of Traktor Pro) and if you want timecode why not put in $30 more and get Traktor A6? (Fanboys need not apply here)
I guess NI is already making its money from audio plugins (Komplete series) so they're making it easier for DJs (which consists more of amateurs and hobbyist)

It seems like Native have finally run out of options for selling software. This is a good move for people wanting to get their hands on a Traktor license, since they're essentially giving them away now, but a very bad omen for the software itself. Native are quickly turning themselves into a hardware company with an edge in the software department, that doesn't bode well for anyone in the long term, especially when then hardware is controllers.

Maybe, but maybe also thy're recognising that the App Store and smartphones are just driving the market price for software down, and the days of software costing this music are limited. Also, what DJs want is working systems, not working software per se - if NI can provide proper working systems (hardware/software) that are good value and beat the competition, surely it makes better sense (to them)?

To them, and this is the problem. Things like NHL support, Advanced HID, and browser improvements are what Traktor needs, but what Native won't provide due to their profit structure. They either can't make money off of those things, or would be directly competing with themselves if they implemented them. Thus, unless you're in Natives hardware/software ecosystem, you're losing out, and this is the software that started out as the "open" one. This isn't suggesting Native are doing anything "wrong," but they're just in a really bad place, being a software developer with a hardware stock they need to move.

This hardware focus on software needs to be expanded into agreements with hardware manufactures and "Traktor certified" gear, not Native specific gear, but Native's need to sell hardware impedes that. Going into the hardware market with a software edge was the best, and worst thing Native has done.

Yup. Seems they are borrowing a leaf from Apple and Serato with this call. Let's see how it goes. Software shouldn't be super expensive considering that most new buyers these days are basically "consumer djs". The pros already know what they work with and I'm sure they are super comfy with their methods.

BTW Phil, I noticed the ddjtips stutters when browsing on my iPad, especially the home page. I m using the iPad themed site. Did anyone else report this.

If they already have a controller with an soundcard (as I do -- a DJ Console 4-Mx) but may still want to take advantage of Traktor's advanced FX and whatnot, there's no need to buy the extra hardware. (Also, it's $89 from the NI website.)

Wow! This will blow other software out of the water. Looking forward to my copy of 2.5. Hope Denon produce some mapping for my mc6000 soon after this introduction. I was also thinking of adding an f1 to my set up after launch.

So:
- The software I paid for last year is now half it's price.
- The additional features of 2.5 cannot be used effectively with my existing MIDI gear and I must buy a new controller from NI. Get yours NOW!
- The justification for this is outrageous, the true reason is clear.
- The stress on the processor in my macbook is noticeably higher.

Where I had anticipated great benefit I am now, and for the first time I can remember on ANY software, seriously considering rolling it back a version.

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